Jack Durish 
  • Home
  • Books...
    • The Accidental Spy >
      • Excerpt from The Accidental Spy
    • Rebels on the Mountain >
      • Excerpt from Rebels on the Mountain
      • Writing Rebels on the Mountain
    • Combat Training >
      • Except from Combat Training
    • A Soldier's Journal >
      • Excerpt from A Soldier's Journal
  • Short Stories
  • Jack's BLOG
  • Contact the author

Let me tell you a story...

Short stories, long stories. True stories, fictional stories. I love a good story. If you love them too, this is the place for you.

Meet the author

Did you wear a poppy for Veterans Day?

11/11/2014

0 Comments

 

Americana/History

There are a few quaint traditions that have faded from the culture but not from my memory. People wore poppies on Veterans Day. Everyone wore a carnation on Mothers Day, red if she was alive and white if not. Americans stood for the playing of the National Anthem, hands held over hearts. Sure, some still observe these traditions. Others do not. Many do not even know that they were common practices once upon a time.
Poppies in Flanders field
I saw the disparity of memory and knowledge as I sat outside a neighborhood grocery store this weekend passing out Buddy Poppies for the Veterans of Foreign Wars and taking donations from those who cared. A few paused to talk. One offered to fetch me a cup of coffee for it was chilly this November 11th in Southern California. I could not help but wonder how many or how few understood the significance of the little red artificial flowers that I offered.
Wearing poppies in remembrance of those who lived and fought and died in the Great War and all that followed began with a poem written by a Canadian soldier, Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae:
Picture
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead, Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie 
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from falling hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders Fields.

A few who stopped to accept my offering of a poppy were from Canada and Great Britain. They mentioned their surprise at seeing me here. It seems that veterans distributing poppies and people proudly wearing them is a far more common sight in their native lands, their memories longer than those of Americans.

Sad.
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Jack Durish
    Click to meet Jack Durish

    Blogs written at Oh-Dark-Thirty

    ...or whenever the spirit moves me. Enjoy.

    Past postings: More than 500 postings have accumulated since 2011. Some categories (listed below) are self explanatory, others require some explanation:
    • Blogging: Commentary on the art and science of maintaining a successful website/weblog
    • Cuba: History of the island and its people gathered while writing my novel, Rebels on the Mountain
    • Good Reads: Book reviews and interviews with current authors
    • Infantry School: A journal of my experiences in Basic Combat Training, Advanced Infantry Training, and Infantry Officer Candidate School in preparation to going to war in Vietnam.
    • Oh-dark-thirty: Random thoughts that wake me up in the middle of the night
    • Opinion: I am not a member of any organized (or disorganized) political party. My views tend to be libertarian. 
    • Sea Scouts: A journal of my experiences as man and boy with this branch of Boy Scouting (probably not what you'd expect)
    • Today's Chuckle: Comics and jokes "borrowed" from other sources with links and thanks to the owners of the originals
    • Vietnam: A journal of my experiences and observations of the Vietnam War while assigned to the 9th Infantry Division, 1967 to 1968
    • Writing: Personal observations on the craft of writing and the current condition of the publishing industry
    Choose a category from the list below.

    Guest postings are welcome: Use the Contact Form to request more information.

    Categories

    All
    America
    Army Life
    Blogging
    Cuba
    Election 2012
    Election 2014
    Election 2016
    Entrepreneurs
    Good Reads
    History
    Humor
    Infantry School
    In The News
    Korea
    Middle East
    Oh Dark Thrity
    Oh-dark-thrity
    Opinion
    Sea Scouts
    Short Story
    Sponsored
    Survey
    Television
    Terrorism
    Today's Chuckle
    Veterans
    Vietnam
    Writing

    Archives

    February 2018
    January 2018
    October 2017
    August 2017
    June 2017
    April 2017
    February 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    March 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011


    RSS Feed


    Copyright © 2013, Jack Durish All rights reserved

    Tweets by @jackdrsm

Settings

X

Contact list

X

Send professional emails to your contacts with Constant Contact Email Marketing

I've read and agreed to the Terms & Conditions and Mail Terms of Service.
X
Loading...
Instagram
Check Page Rank
Banner photo and portrait by
  Mark Jordan Photography
Picture
Popularity Media


Tweet
,Copyright © 2015, Jack Durish All rights reserved
Picture
Click for Mobile Website
Web Hosting by iPage
✕